Hating Clausen

Jimmy Clausen signed his NFL contract with the Carolina Panthers Wednesday morning, just in time for training camp. Signing at the last minute is common for NFL draft picks - particularly a quarterback with a high profile like Clausen. No doubt that the Panthers are a great situation for Clausen - a team with no proven quarterback, a solid running game, a conservative approach, and a coach friendly with the Weis system (John Fox). The contract is standard in guaranteed money ($2.4M), but with plenty of incentives should Clausen earn the starting job early in his career. Sounds like a pretty fair deal for both parties. 


Clausen is a polarizing figure in recent Notre Dame history among Irish fans. While its normal for non-Irish fans to hate the Notre Dame quarterback, Clausen was different because many inside the family did not care for him much. Certainly some of the resentment among ND fans towards Clausen is due to the record his team's had while he was the Quarterback (16-18 as the starter). I understand that quarterbacks are ultimately judged by wins and losses than any other athlete. Even though a baseball pitcher's ERA always seems to validate his performance despite a bad win/loss record, this is not the case for a quarterback - who is expected to lead and win no matter what the circumstances. 


Those Notre Dame fans that resent Jimmy because of his lack of wins I believe are too stubborn to look at the details. Whether you like Clausen or not, we all know that the 2007-2009 teams were some of the worst defensive teams ever at Notre Dame - giving up 29, 22, and 26pts per game, respectively. The 2009 team was finally talented enough, but was unable to close out games, losing 6 games by a total of 28 points. Certainly the offense could have done more in those games - but not much more. In those 6 losses of 2009, the offense averaged 29pts/game, while Clausen threw 15 TDs against only 2 INTs - completing over 65% of his passes. Its easy to see that Clausen performed well, and its even easy to acknowledge that the win loss record isn't the only way to evaluate a QB's performance. Why do many Notre Dame fans still resent Jimmy Clausen then?


The resentment of Jimmy Clausen within the Notre Dame family, as well as outside of it, was created by the circumstances of his arrival more than anything else.  When Clausen announced his intentions to attend Notre Dame at a press conference in May of 2006, the event was nothing short of a disaster. A limousine with an entourage, spiked hair, and a show & tell of championship rings were all involved - each of which is towards the top of any PR person's list of don'ts. Clausen's announcement created the same overblown expectations and resentment as Lebron's recent "The Decision" - meaning only a national championship or 3 would restore him to the graces of many. Later, as the Charlie Weis era fell apart, Clausen became a symbol of the departing regime, embodying the player version of Charlie Weis - no doubt talented, but unable to win at the college level. 


Obviously, I am a Clausen supporter. He made some initial mistakes as an 18 year old, creating a bad first impression he could never undo - just like Charlie Weis. No matter what you think about Clausen, you have to admit he is starting out on much better footing in the NFL with the Carolina Panthers than at Notre Dame. Clausen has had a quiet summer by all accounts, working hard in Charlotte and building a rapport with his new coaches and teammates. His expectations are helped by the fact that he's a 2nd round draft pick instead of a first, and since he plays in a mid-market city on a team that is expected to be average. I don't know whether Clausen will be a good NFL quarterback - but he isn't doomed for failure from the start like it seems he was at Notre Dame. I like to think he has taken his medicine and learned something from his Notre Dame experience as he starts a new chapter in his career. We'll see. 

First Post of 2010

Sadly, this is the first post of 2010 here at Vatican Smoke. Happy New Years I guess? The Pope took a sabbatical of sorts, taking time off to handle moving from Memphis, TN to Pittsburgh, PA, starting a new job, buying a house, and getting married. On top of all that, I've been decompressing from the heart break of the Charlie Weis era. It's been a busy 6 months, but I'm back with a new focus, and some hopefully entertaining takes on the upcoming 2010 Notre Dame football season.


Since the blog is starting up after a layover, now's a good time to define what Vatican Smoke is. The blog is not a reporting outlet with any inside knowledge or information; nor am I someone who is in the mainstream media (or media at all). I don't know more than the next guy, and I am certainly biased in my opinions (despite my burning desire to be objective). My writing skills are average, and I have no journalism pedigree. Why should you read this blog? Passionate sports fans need to commiserate with one another after a loss, celebrate with someone after a win, and work through a process of understanding why something incredible or terrible happened to their team. ESPN can't give you the community you need - (hopefully) Vatican Smoke can help. Especially after the last few years, every Notre Dame fan needs a bit of therapy. So enjoy some free, unlicensed treatment, here at Vatican Smoke.


In addition to a renewed purpose for the blog, here are a few specific goals & improvements for Vatican Smoke this season:

• Shorter posts  -  I'm not an expert and this is not must read material for anyone. I appreciate the readers' time, and will be challenging myself to deliver something entertaining or at least stimulating in fewer words.
• Minimal usage of bullet points and numbering  -  Damn. Of course this is delivered via a bullet point. Numbering and bullet pointed are writer's crutch, more appropriate for communicating facts, not opinions on a blog.
• More relevant outside articles  -  The Fighting Irish have a lot of great beat reporters that follow the team closely with well written analysis. These guys provide great coverage, which is a great starting point for more blog posts. 

So thats the plan for the 2010 season. As always, I'd love to hear what you think, positive or not. With practice starting 11 days from today, not to mention an exciting new coach, get ready for plenty of "therapy". 

What Went Wrong

Brian Kelly is off to a great public relations start to his coaching tenure at Notre Dame - already a local celebrity of sorts. Notre Dame fans are more tempered this time around, after getting overly excited at the start of the Charlie Weis and Ty Willingham eras. Coach Weis's opening press conference was exactly what the tired Notre Dame fanbase needed - energy through a display of bravado and arrogance. The Irish fans ate up that Charlie Weis opening monologue, spawning the typical "Return to Glory" and "Wake up the echoes" catch phrases. Brian Kelly's opening press conference was more like a politician's first words as an elected representative - grateful, careful, and inspiring. No matter how smooth or energetic Kelly looks, ND fans know better than to get overly excited before the first games are played. And even then, given that Weis and Willingham had arguably their best seasons in year 1, Irish fans should really wait until season 2 and 3. 


Plenty of offseason remains to talk about Kelly and changes in the Irish football program - new coaches, recruiting, etc. In this post, I am closing the book on the Charlie Weis era - a final lookback that, at least from Vatican Smoke's perspective, will serve as an obituary for one of my favorite Notre Dame figures ever. After this post, the blog will focus on the Brian Kelly era, without looking back much to the past. 


What went wrong? Two straight BCS bowls, elite recruiting, explosive offense, and optimism were the prevailing headlines of the first two years of the Charlie Weis era. How could such a talented offensive mind not win at Notre Dame - his alma matre? Here are some reasons why Charlie failed - as well as a few qualities of Charlie Weis that most Notre Dame fans should remember. 

• Charlie Weis never got a defense - neither thru recruiting or a defensive coordinator. When the Irish hired Jon Tenuta before the 2008 season, I was ecstatic. A hyper aggressive, plenty experienced DC that had manhandled the Irish in two games in 2006-07 - Tenuta appeared to bring an edge the Irish defense needed. Alas, the stubbornness and inability to adapt to the personnel at ND doomed Tenuta. Recruiting never produced consistently solid defensive lineman in enough numbers to disrupt running games or bring pressure on the quarterback.
• Coach Weis's teams never improved as the season went on. Charlie Weis's record from November 1st thru the end of the season during his 5 years was 11-13. In 2007-2009 (the last 3 seasons), his record was just 4-10 from November 1st on. Good teams get better and finish the season strong, peaking when it matters. Outside of the wins against Stanford ('07) and Hawaii ('08), the Irish lost the final game Weis's other 3 seasons. 
• Charlie never beat the elite teams - or many ranked teams for that matter. Notre Dame was just 1-8 versus top 10 ranked teams (ranked at the time of the game - the lone win being Charlie's second career game in 2005 at Michigan, a team finished 7-5); even worse really, the Irish were a terrible 4-12 against ranked teams. Charlie was 0-5 against USC, 2-3 against Michigan, and 1-2 against Boston College. I have nothing to add here. 
• Charlie's initial arrogance created a schism with some alumni that was never repaired.  Charlie's initial arrogance and unwillingness to appear at the traditional alumni events during his first two years came back to haunt him during the the 3-9 campaign of 2007, as his character description changed from "colorful and confident" to "arrogant and a$$hole". Numerous people never forgave Charlie for his early transgressions - too many people that mattered. These people pushed hard during 2007 - 2009 to get Charlie out, and eventually succeeded. 
• Coach Weis's physical limitations eventually were harmful to the program. College football players need inspiration and energy to play one of the more emotional sports around. Weis's appearance quite simply drained energy from the program. Constantly hobbling around, on crutches, or the butt of fat jokes, the program was never able to shake the image that Weis portrayed physically. The Jersey accent and hooded sweatshirts didn't impress anyone either. While not as important as the above reasons, there is no way around it - appearance matters for those who wish to lead. Do presidents and CEOs look sloppy, wearing sweatshirts, with serious weight issues? Do leaders drive around in a golf cart, always in need of physical assistance? There are certainly leaders with physical disabilities. However, a) there aren't that many and b) even fewer of them are great football coaches. 
• Charlie Weis proved that Notre Dame can recruit elite talent once again. Charlie's 5 recruiting classes at Notre Dame finished ranked 30th, 8th, 8th, 2nd, and 21st. The first class was 98% Willingham in 2005, so we will remove that, since Weis was winning a Super Bowl with the Patriots. The current commits for the next year's 2010 class are 98% Weis, so we will add the current ranking of 12th. Weis's average national ranking/finish in his 5 recruiting efforts was 10.2. Not bad. Given all the restrictions at ND, an average class ranked #10 is about as good as we can reasonably ask for. Texas's average class rank during those same 5 years was 9.8, while Florida was 6.2; yet USC was tops over those 5 years with an average class rank of 3.2.  Many thought ND could never recruit elite talent again - whether because of the location, academics, or lack of recent championships. Weis debunked that myth. 
• Charlie Weis ran a clean program - one that we are all proud of off the field. In 2009 Notre Dame football actually shared the top spot in graduation rates for Division 1-A - which is nothing short of amazing. Off the field, the worst things that happened under Weis were a few minor alcohol issues, and some on campus stuff that happens with college kids. All in all, Weis performed as expected in the off the field arena: maintaining the high standards of Notre Dame off the field, while graduating players on time. 
• Charlie Weis is a good person. Many people assume Charlie's confidence/arrogance is an indicator of the type of person he outside of football. In reality, Charlie's Jersey / Bill Parcell's type attitude was just the football Charlie. Outside of work, Charlie gives all his time to his family - quite often to the charity his wife Maura and he founded in honor of his autistic daughter (Hannah & Friends). Go to CharlieWeis.com - and see where you end up. Other coaches sell tshirts and calendars on their website. Not Charlie. 

Bottom line: Charlie is an innovative football mind that was not able to adjust quickly enough to the head coaching of college football. He was excruciatingly close in so many areas (recruiting, offense), but came up short in many others (defense, media relations, close losses). A majority of the issues with Coach Weis boil down to a lack of college football head coaching experience - clearly the #1 criteria in finding our new football coach. What Charlie Weis lacked, Brian Kelly certainly has. Will BK be successful? If the initial excitement and deflation of the Charlie Weis and Ty Willingham eras taught us anything, its that we have to temper expectations and not resort to naming a new coach savior after beating Purdue. 


We'll miss you Charlie - and we'll always remember the great times (Michigan '05, USC '05, Michigan St '06, Michigan '08). And most people, including myself, are sorry it didn't work out. We know that you love Notre Dame with all your heart, and tried your damndest to get the program back on track. You left the Notre Dame football program better off than it was when you arrived, and you'll be a ton better NFL Offensive Coordinator now because of this experience. Best of luck. 




The BK era begins . . . coaching staff should be announced within a week, and recruiting is super busy right now. Sounds like BK should be able to get a top 15 class, very possibly top 10. And a good staff as well. Stay tuned. 

The Final Hours

While nothing is official yet, it appears that Cincinnati Head Football Coach Brian Kelly will officially accept the Notre Dame coaching position this evening. I have no inside info or any sources more than you do, but some of the best in the Notre Dame coverage business (Tim Prister, Mike Frank), think that all things are pointing to Kelly. The crux of the timing is that tonight is Cincinnati's team banquet - where Kelly would almost have to address the Notre Dame job one way or another. He could have his resounding "I'm here at Cincy to stay" moment, but many educated Notre Dame people think he will reveal that he has accepted the Notre Dame job. 

Vatican Smoke has been silent during the coaching search for a few reasons. First, there really was no info that was wholeheartedly reliable. The lack of information created a vacuum for every internet rumor known to man. The guys at Blue Gray Sky even planted a rumor, tracking it from an email and a few tweets all the way to a national news source. Jack Swarbrick has played this very close to the vest - kudos to him for that. Second reason for silence - since the Irish are not going to a bowl game, we have the entire offseason to dissect the hire - as well as dissect what went wrong with the Charlie Weis era. I felt that judgement and predictions would be wasted energy until we actually hire a coach and some time. 

Bottom line here is that Vatican Smoke supports whomever Notre Dame and Jack Swarbrick hires. Swarbrick is a Notre Dame alum that is intelligent, experienced, and not an academic trying to play athletic director (Dr. Kevin White anyone?). The public is not privy to the decision process, and quite simply alums and fans must do something that should be natural to Notre Dame fans: have faith. A coaching search is hardly a matter for the Pope, but rather, I mean that we need to have faith in our Athletics Director, trusting that he will make the right choice. Everyone knows that this is one of the most important decisions Jack Swarbrick or Father Jenkins will ever make in their lives - so don't you think they want to get it right? 

Not all coaching hires are definite successes or failures. Remember, when Lou Holtz was hired, it was a very ho-hum hire, bringing in a coach who got ran out of the NFL and had been a head coach at 4 colleges. What about how we felt when Charlie was hired? Not many Irish fans thought he would fail - but rather the question was how many championships he would win, and how fast. If Charlie Weis taught us anything as ND fans, its that we'd rather be happy in 3 years than at the press conference to announce our new coach. 

Lets be patient, have faith, and reserve judgement until the proper time. 

Waiting

Many people have asked me this week what I thought about the UConn loss. Others have made statements around me like "Man, that UConn loss has got to be the worst loss in ND history". Nearly all of the people that make these comments or ask questions about the loss, quite frankly, just don't "get it". 


Notre Dame is waiting for a new football coach. One game here, another there, they don't matter as much as who will be heading the program in the next week. Watching the UConn game was the least frustrating and most peaceful viewing of a Notre Dame game that I have ever had. Rooting for the Irish to win is a given - but losing to UConn would only make the coaching change more inevitable. Moving on with a new coach is what we need - and beating UConn & Stanford would have been some momentum in the opposite direction. That's why the UConn game was so stress free for me - there was benefit no matter what the outcome. And don't downplay UConn  -  these guys have a solid football team that have lost 3 games in the final 30 seconds to good teams. 

So what's the outlook on new coaches? Hopefully we will know more in a weeks time. I think that other than Jon Gruden, the candidate must have a proven head coaching track record in college. Brian Kelly (pictured), Urban Meyer, Bob Stoops, Gary Patterson, and Paul Johnson all fit that bill. Make no mistake about it - while the ND job will attract tons of very tough attention and pressure, ND is still a place where you can win - and win next season. Here is a very scientific formula for you:  A new defensive minded coach + returning talent + recruiting (85% of commitments said they will keep their pledges unless a crazy hire is made) + the fact that all 6 losses were close games (4pts, 7pts, 2pts, 5pts, 3pts, whatever to Stanford) + another favorable schedule in 2010  =  a great chance to win 8 games next year. Having an average defense would have won the Irish 9 games, maybe more this season. Just think if Charlie could have ever gotten a defense  -  he'd still be our coach next year. 


For Charlie's sake, I hope the Irish come out to play for him against Stanford. The Cardinal run game is going to be tough to stop, so if I were the Irish, I would come out guns blazing and let Jimmy do what he does - throw it around the yard. Certainly it would make sense for us to establish a rushing attack. We will never be able to truly rush the ball with authority while we have such a good QB and WR core. Lets do what we are good at (passing the rock), which happens to be Stanford's biggest weakness (pass defense). However, I don't expect this game to show us anything new about the Irish or Charlie Weis. Another close game and frustrating loss awaits Irish fans (as I predicted in the preseason, a loss to Stanford):


IRISH     27      STANFORD   34


(Vatican Smoke is 7-4 picking the winners, and 7-4 against the spread as well) 


Remember this  -  things are never as bad or as good as they seem. There are some talented young players on our team waiting for a new coach, and some small improvements could have made a 3 to 4 game difference this season. We arent as far away from respectability as the media will have you believe. Brighter days are ahead. 


Have a great thanksgiving!! There will be tons of good stuff to discuss in the coming two weeks, so stay tuned Irish fans.